Cholera Epidemic of 1849

In 1849, approximately one-tenth of the population of St. Louis died from disease. The Western Journal newspaper reported that 8,445 people died, with 4,285 deaths attributed to cholera. Additional deaths may have occurred, since many people were buried outside the city limits. A complete list of deaths is not available. The St. Louis death register started in 1850, one year after the plague; therefore, it is not helpful for identification of plague victims. Cemetery records for many of the plague victims do not exist.

The Missouri Republican newspaper usually reported five or six deaths a week. In July 1849, reported deaths numbered nearly 150. This number was only about five percent of the actual deaths. By August, the plague had started to subside.

This list was transcribed from the Missouri Republican newspaper. Microfilm of this newspaper is available at the Missouri History Museum Library and Research Center in St. Louis and the State Historical Society of Missouri in Columbia.

If you are trying to find verification of your ancestor’s death in 1849, check the mortality schedule for Missouri in the 1850 federal census.

This list was published in the 1978 St. Louis Genealogical Society Quarterly, volume 11, number. 3, pages 67–71.